Could It Be Magic...?
(Magic #1)
Heather Mar-Gerrison
Heather Mar-Gerrison Copyright 2019
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No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author, except where permitted by law. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work.
Prologue
Saul grinned inwardly, finding it hard to hide his excitement as he perused the glossy brochure again. Ordinary, every-day, human college. At last! He thought, a normal place to study – with normal subjects to study about! No more being the stupid one in the class – no more doing over his final year of magical study in the hope that this would be the year that he might just pass the Advanced Magic exams. (exams that he hadn’t managed to pass for the last three years…) Fat chance of that ever happening.
He looked out of his bedroom window. Well, he wasn’t going to miss that view. He’d never liked this room. He still remembered having to give up his bedroom when his younger sister had come along and they’d made it back into a nursery. His sister’s room was on the other side of the house and got the morning sunshine, something he really missed.
It was darker in the mornings on this side of the house and he’d never been very good at rising – particularly in the winter months when it didn’t get light until around eight o’clock. To make matters worse, they lived in the shadow of the large, imposing church. For some reason, that church had always given Saul the creeps – even though he knew, rationally, that it was a place of worship and therefore, supposedly of peace.
But Saul could never find peace in that place. The beliefs held within those walls would never be a welcoming place for him if they knew his truth…
But he didn’t have to worry about that any longer. He was making his escape in precisely two days. He couldn’t wait. Hell, he was already packed.
Saul glanced at the church and fought down the feeling of panic that swept through him. He wondered if they had the same gods in the normal world. Probably.
To be fair, he could happily go along with most of the gods. The god of peace was something he identified with. It was really only the god of love that he couldn’t get his head around. If she was the god of love, why couldn’t she accept his version of it? Why was it so wrong to fall in love with another boy? It didn’t make any sense. It went right against the fundamental belief of loving… He’d listened to thousands of sermons over the years, preaching about loving each other and being kind to each other, which he totally agreed with, only no one would show him kindness if they knew the way in which he liked boys instead of girls. No one else felt that way… or if they did, like him, they kept it entirely to themselves…
Saul sighed. He would never fit in here. Not in a million years. He was so glad he was leaving…
Saul was going to be twenty-one in December and everyone else he’d gone to school with, were now either studying for the Wizarding equivalent of a degree or they’d gone on to find gainful employment within the wizarding community – something he could never do because no one wanted someone to work for them that wasn’t proficient in magical processing. Not everyone in the magical community was actually magical and it was accepted that some people had to go out of town to work. Saul had always imagined that, eventually, he would be sent out of town to work but his father had high hopes that one day he would work for the Pyramid and he’d pushed as far as he could go with his magical education. Saul rather thought that he’d been wasting his time but he didn’t dare utter his thoughts aloud or think about them for too long either, just in case (Not that it would matter if he did, no one could read his mind either because he simply wasn’t wired up properly). He was aware that he was a massive disappointment to his father, because he didn’t bother to hide it anymore, if indeed he ever had… Everyone knew that it was ten times worse to have no magical powers when you born to a magical family than just being a normal human. Being human was one thing – but being a witch with no magical powers was just sad...
Saul liked to think in his more fanciful moments that he was just a human that had mysteriously stumbled his way into the magical world by some cosmic chance when he was but a small child. After all, he really didn’t look much like the rest of his family. Granted he had the same almost black hair of his father, but his eyes were dark brown, which were nothing like his mother’s hazel eyes and certainly nothing like his father’s bright green eyes. Of course, in the wizarding world, people could actually change the colour of their eyes and a whole host of other facial and bodily attributes, and he secretly wondered if this was the case with his father. It wouldn’t surprise him one bit if he did. His father was a bit of a peacock…
He read through the course about Geology and his heart started to beat a little faster with excitement. Okay, so Geology might not be everyone’s idea of a fun subject, but for Saul, who had grown up with witchcraft shoved down his throat at every opportunity, rocks were a nice escape. They were solid and dependable and the chances of getting something wrong with a rock wasn’t nearly as terrifying as getting a spell wrong – disastrous consequences were slim to non-existent with Geology...
He was actually rather bewildered to have been given the opportunity to go to a regular school and he was still pinching himself to make sure it was all real.
But it was real and he had the bruises to prove it – all the way up his arm.
His father had really surprised him this time. He was usually adamant that Saul had to persevere, to master each spell and to use it until he was completely proficient. His mother tried to intervene; tried to stick up for him against his father’s wrath but generally with little or no success. His father was a bully and he bullied her almost as much as he bullied Saul. Saul’s sister, Marissa, who, incidentally didn’t have black hair or green or dark brown eyes, but was blonde with hazel eyes, just like their mother, was the golden child of the family. Nigel Blackthorn adored his daughter…
Whether he’d just gotten bored with the whole thing, or if Advanced Level Magic was just so much harder than Ordinary Level Magic, which he hadn’t done too badly in, Saul wasn’t sure. All he knew was that he was failing quite spectacularly in every subject from the most basic Spelling to the highly dangerous art of Mind Manipulation – something his father was an absolute genius at – and had been wholeheartedly relieved when his father had sat him down, showed him a couple of brochures for regular human universities (which he’d taken to his room and cherished) and told him in no uncertain terms that once the summer term was over with, he was being withdrawn from the Pyramid recommended education system for adolescent witches and wizards and was transferring to alternative education in the ordinary human world in the autumn.
“You’re abysmal at magic.” He said cruelly, “You’ll fit right in.”
Saul swallowed hard, trying his best not to take the criticism to heart but without much success. It always hurt when his father was mean to him. “What am I studying?” he asked as he perused the glossy pages, hoping against hope it had something to do with rocks. Other than rocks, the only thing he was remotely good at was Astrology and his father looked down his nose at that subject, too.
“Geology,” His father snapped, “That’s what you’re good at, isn’t it?” he added with a sneer, “That and star-gazing,” he snorted rudely before slinging his last shot of shaming, “Oh, yes – and, of course, ogling scantily-clad young men online
. Do you have something you wish to tell me, Saul?”
Saul blushed crimson. How the hell had his father found out about his Tumblr account? He’d always been very careful to always log in through private browsing. Still, his father was one of the top advisors in the Pyramid. Of course, he’d know what Saul was doing... “No, sir.” He muttered, “I have absolutely nothing to tell you.”
His father gave him a hard stare, “I’ll let it go this time, then,” he said in a clipped tone, “but let me tell you here and now, young man,” he gave him the evil eye, which, coming from Nigel Blackthorn, with his creepily bright green eyes, was a very evil thing indeed, “I expect an heir to continue the Blackthorn bloodline. Since you are my only son, I expect you to meet and marry a young lady of good family to continue the name on – and you know that we expect our offspring to make good connections before their twenty-first birthday?” Saul nodded miserably. Nigel Blackthorn glared at his only son, disappointment etched in every line of his evil face, “Since you’ve managed to get to that age without reaching any kind of attainable qualifications to even begin to look for a wife for you, I’m extending the usual time limit. You’ve got an additional two years.” He snapped.
Saul fought with himself not to roll his eyes. Why couldn’t his sister be the one to produce the heir? What was in a name, anyway? Wasn’t it all down to blood? The blood didn’t know it had a name…
And when was his father going to wake up and smell the coffee? He’d been as gay as a picnic basket for as long as he could remember. It was one of the reasons he’d never really fit in with the rest of his classmates. He’d made friends with boys when he was small but he’d always wanted more than the sort of friendships the boys made. He was always left broken-hearted when they decided he was a bit too weird to be friends with.
And he was weird. There was no getting away from it. Absolutely no one else in the magical community seemed remotely attracted to anyone of the same sex. Saul had often wondered if he’d been dropped on his head as a baby or something – or maybe some sort of potion had been administered to him as a youngster... Something had to have made him the way he was – and not just the gay business. He’d read up on that flaw in his personality and had found to his relief there was nothing wrong with him and that he was simply gay – it was more because he just didn’t seem to fit in with anyone he’d been brought up with.
Well, his Advanced Level Magic results might have been poor, bordering on pathetic, but that wouldn’t make any difference at a university for non-magical students. He could make a new start, hopefully make new friends and live a whole new life – far away from his overbearing, sneering father and if he was really lucky, he could stay away for good…
Chapter 1 – First Impressions
Saul stood nervously in the doorway of the student union bar and looked around. It was just the same as school had looked in the magical world – only different, somehow…
Everyone had a spoon to stir their hot drinks for starters – that wasn’t required back at home. You just ‘thought’ it stirred – well, you did if you were any good at magic… Saul had a spoon because he was useless at magic and he had a sweet tooth.
Since his dad hadn’t wanted to have anything to do with his new education, it had been his mother who had dropped him off at his allotted time. She’d just left, giving him a tearful hug and reminding him that she loved every hair on his head and to call her. He’d promised that he would and checked that she’d charged the battery on the mobile phone she’d purchased at the same time as she’d bought him a really fancy touch screen model, especially so that he could call. Being kind of useless at magic, he couldn’t communicate with her in the usual way, which was through mind connection and he was delighted to be able to use such an amazing piece of technology. Saul loved technology. It was almost as good as magic, anyway… and he could definitely master technology. He might have never mastered mind connection, but hell, that was nothing new – he’d never really mastered anything magical…
As soon as he’d waved his mother off, he dumped his suitcase with his clothes on his bed and arranged the rest of his belongings in his room. He rearranged them numerous times until he was satisfied (without magic, thanks very much) but now he actually had to go out there and try to make some new friends. A daunting task, when he was possibly the least popular student at his last school and had no idea how to make friends with ‘normal’ people any more than he had with his own kind – if he could really call them his own kind, when he barely knew the difference between a wand and a broomstick...
He made his way down the stairs and crossed the rather pleasantly planted courtyard, to the student union bar.
Whether by chance or by something entirely cosmic, his eyes kept settling back on the same person. A guy, dressed just like everyone else, but for some reason, he stood out – and not just because of his bright red hair. The hair of a demon… he thought to himself idly.
Almost as if he could feel Saul’s eyes on him, the guy turned. Almond shaped, bright green eyes, framed with the darkest eyelashes ever, looked back at him curiously. Saul’s heart skipped a beat and he sucked in a sharp breath. Wow. That was a pretty bewitching sight and not least because he was a demon personified. Dark red hair, green eyes, dark lashes and oh, soooo handsome…
He found himself drifting over to him without really being all that aware of it, “Hi.” He found himself saying against his better judgement.
Saul had never been so bold as to strike up a conversation with a perfect stranger before. It was almost as if there was magic in the air. Magic that had never been apparent before…
The red-haired beauty looked up at him and then around himself before eyeing him again curiously, “Alright,” he finally grunted.
Ah. So, maybe he really was only human after all – albeit with outstanding colouring. Who knew that red hair and green eyes would be such a bewitching sight? He didn’t seem to be quite so articulate as Saul, and as far as he knew, demons were incredibly articulate – and cunning and sly and generally demonic so, he definitely couldn’t be one of those. Well, of course he couldn’t. This was the ordinary world. Phew…
“I’m Saul.” He offered helpfully, “I’m new here.”
The redhead frowned, “Newsflash, sparky,” he said sarcastically, “We’re all new here. It’s freshers.”
Fuck! I knew that. I did! Saul soldiered on valiantly, “Ah, sure, sure.” He flashed a winning smile, “Stupid,” he said, pointing to himself, “I was kicked out of my old college for being useless at the subjects I was doing. So, I thought I’d give Geology a go. I love rocks – they’re so dependable.”
The redhead looked at him as if he was slightly mad and then started to look around himself again – this time, presumably, for an escape route.
Shit. He was doing it again. Making a bad first impression. Think, Saul, think! “I’m so sorry for being rude,” he said in his most charming voice, “I never asked what your name was?” He looked at him expectantly.
The redhead visibly rolled his eyes, but he clearly wasn’t rude enough to tell Saul to go to hell, “It’s uh, Laars.” He mumbled, “Laars Zanelli.”
Saul grinned, “Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Laars.” He gushed, desperate to make a better impression than his initial one. And you have the sexiest name I’ve ever heard.
Laars grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder. Standing up, he pushed his chair back with a bit of a screech, “Sorry, mate,” he said, looking a little uncomfortable, “I’ve uh, I’ve gotta go.” He said, “I’ve just remembered something I have to do.”
Saul’s heart sank. He was well aware that he was getting the brush-off. It happened all of the time. He was always far too eager to befriend someone... He nodded. He knew when he was beat. “Fine, sure – go ahead.” He said dejectedly, wafting his hand around in an attempt to look cool about the whole brush-off thing. “I’ll, uh – I’ll just pinch your chair, then, if you’re leaving.”
; Laars nodded, “Oh, yeah – sure.” He flashed him a small smile that was barely there, “Laters.”
And with that, he disappeared into the swarm of students milling around. “Great.” Saul muttered to himself. “Whose fucking idea was this?”
The annoying little voice that sounded suspiciously like his mother’s came from somewhere deep inside his head. “Yours, you foolish boy. No one will ever accept you in the human world. You should think again. Come home and we’ll enrol you for the December re-sits. I’ll try to talk your father round. I miss you Saul, and I can’t bear the thought of you being out there, all alone in that big, strange world with no friends to keep you company.”
He shook his head. It was weird that he could hear his mother – not because that wasn’t the way he was supposed to communicate with her – it was totally the accepted way to communicate in his world. It was weird because he’d never heard her before. No way. He thought to himself. Surely that was just my own imagination?
“Let me know when you change your mind, sweetheart and I’ll come straight away to pick you up. And Saul – don’t forget that I packed you enough underwear for a fortnight. Do not forget to wash your clothes and remember to always use your deodorant. No one likes people who smell bad. There’s a launderette on site. You don’t need magic to work out where the washing powder goes. Love you sweetheart.”
Holy cow! He really could hear her! Fancy that? “Thanks, Mum,” he thought in his mind, “I’ll bear that in mind.”
There was no way he was going home – at least not immediately, even if his magical powers did seem to have miraculously increased almost the instant he’d left. Never mind his magical power – where would his staying power be if he went back? And besides, he was too embarrassed to return home, anyway. All of his magical friends – if he could even call them that – thought there was something wrong with him for liking rocks... and definitely for liking boys...
Could It Be Magic Page 1
